Bella's Ireland
by CopperFlash
Summary: A look into Bella's time in Ireland before, during and after her mermaid transformation. Watch little Bella grow up and fall in love before moving off to the Gold Coast; an insight into H20's sweetest mermaid!
1. Chapter 1

"There's the last of your things, Bella."

Mrs. Hartley put down a brown box in the middle of Bella's new room. Labeled 'stuffed animals', Bella tore open the box to rescue her fuzzy friends. Being nine and moving to a strange new country with no friends, Bella clung to her stuffed animals for the security and stability the offered her. After a moment, Bella carefully placed her dolphin, koala bear and bunny onto her bed, so she could sleep with them in her arms each night. Although she wasn't happy with moving initially, after her parents explained about their great job opportunities (they were research scientists) and the lovely Irish cottage they were renting, Bella got over her reluctance to leave Gold Coast. Her new house especially seemed like something out of a fairy tale, with its old style shutters and carefully manicured landscape.

Bella's mother smiled and gathered the now empty box.

"Finish settling in, Bella, because in an hour we're going to the farmer's market in town to buy some food for dinner."

Bella looked up at her mother. She was tired from the long day of unpacking, and her small body hadn't yet adjusted to Irish time. Dublin was a whole 8 hours behind Gold Coast, and suddenly Bella felt very tired.

"But I'm so tired, Mommy. Do I have to go?" Bella pleaded with her mother.

"I know sweetheart, but we can't just leave you here alone. Besides, it'll be good for you to see what the town looks like." Bella didn't argue.

Mrs. Hartley turned to leave the room. Bella felt a little bit homesick, so she climbed onto her bed and hugged her stuffed animals once again. She thought of the good times she had back home, but reminded herself that Ireland was a whole new adventure and it could be fun if she wanted it to be.

Hugging her animals tightly, Bella took a deep breath. She was nervous about starting school the next day and having to make new friends. Not that she had many friends in Australia, but at least she wasn't the new girl back at home.

Bella was a sweet child who was easy to get along with. She never caused her parents much trouble, and many adults said she had the face of an angel. With long and wavy blonde hair, striking blue eyes and her smooth, tanned skin, most people were justified in their initial assessment of Bella. However, Bella was often nervous around strangers and played by herself when company came over. Coming to Ireland though, Bella promised herself that she would try and be more outgoing and make more friends. This was her chance to make a new story for herself, and she wouldn't let her past insecurities define her.

* * *

The Hartley family wandered through the streets of their new hometown, stopping by various shops and introducing themselves. Bella felt very out of place as a swirl of Irish accents and Gaelic surrounded her. She mostly hid behind her mother as her parents talked with shopkeepers and townspeople. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Bella and her parents made their way to the farmers market. Standing among the various stands, Bella suddenly realized she was quite hungry. Her stomach growled, and her parents laughed.

"Don't worry sweetheart, Mommy and I will do some light shopping and then we'll have dinner, ok?"

Mr. Hartley looked fondly down at Bella and smiled. Bella mumbled "ok" and tagged along silently with her parents.

"Look, Bella, there's a fountain over there with some children playing in the water. They look about your age. Why don't you go and introduce yourself to them?"

Mrs. Hartley pointed toward the large fountain in the center of the square. About seven or eight children were splashing around in the water and enjoying the sunny weather. Bella was uncertain, but with a small push from her mother she walked towards the other girls and boys.

She stood there awkwardly for a moment before a boy came up to her. He had light brown, wavy hair that fell slightly into his face; even so, Bella could see his haze eyes and high cheekbones. He was about the same height as her, although much more pale. He was the only dry one of the group.

"Hi, my name's Ronan. I haven't seen you before. Are you new here?" The boy spoke very quickly.

Slightly intimidated by his forwardness, Bella nodded her head.

"My name's Bella. I just moved here from Australia." She said quietly.

"Wow! Australia! That's so far away. You'll have to tell me about it some time. How old are you Bella?" Ronan asked her enthusiastically.

Feeling a bit more at ease, Bella answered more confidently, "I'm nine. I'll be going to the elementary school up the hill. How about you?"

Smiling, Ronan replied, "Me too! You'll like our school. We do lots of fun projects and field trips and…" before Ronan could finish, his mother called his name. Smiling sheepishly, he replied, "Ah. Well I'll see you tomorrow then. Can't ignore mum. Later, Bella!" He waved and walked away.

Smiling, Bella meandered down the street a ways to find her parents finishing up at the market. After her meeting with Ronan, she felt less anxious to go to school tomorrow knowing that she already had a friend (or at the very least someone who she knew would be nice to her).

"Ready to go, sweetheart? We've having soup for dinner. Did you meet anyone at the fountain?" Mrs. Hartley asked as she picked up a bag of groceries from the ground.

"Yeah, I met this one boy named Ronan. He was really nice and goes to my school." Bella said, with a smile tugging at her lips.

"That's great! See Bella, making new friends won't be as hard as you thought it would be." Mrs. Hartley patted Bella on the back as they made their way back home.

* * *

That night, after two delicious bowls of chicken noodle soup, Bella lay awake in her bed, looking at the stars outside her window. They were never this bright and numerous in Australia. Somehow, she had a feeling that something magical was going to happen in Ireland. She had a chance to start over, to make new friends, to explore a whole new country, and these possibilities to a nine year old Bella seemed like magic. Tucking her favorite stuffed animal, her dolphin, under her arm, Bella closed her tired eyes and went to sleep.

**A/N: Hey everyone, thanks for reading! I know it's a short chapter, but it is an intro chapter. The rest will be longer. I appreciate any feedback you have for me, even if it's a simple "good job" or "keep writing!". Thanks :)**

**P.S. - I don't own H20: Just Add Water.**


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning Bella woke up to see the sunlight peeking through her white curtains. Her mother, as usual, hadn't come to wake her up. That was ok with Bella since she was an early riser, but she thought her mother would at least try to get her up on time on her first day of school.

Pushing some blonde wisps out of her face, Bella sat up and got out of bed. She quickly made her bed and neatly arranged her stuffed animals on top of her pillow.

"Keep an eye on my room while I'm gone. And no parties either!" Bella pointed at her stuffed animals, knowing that Mr. Bunny could sometimes be a party animal. She giggled to herself and then wandered over to her dresser to decide what to wear. Jeans and a t-shirt seemed like a safe pick, so Bella grabbed her favorite purple flowered t-shirt, her jeans and a fresh pair of underwear and went to take a shower. She was lucky that in this new house she had her own private bathroom connected to her room.

Turning on the hot water, Bella let the liquid cascade over her. The steam warmed up the room and soon she was lost in her own little world. Anxiety and fear melted away as Bella began humming and washing her hair. Music kept Bella grounded; she could always rely on a smooth beat to help her settle her thoughts and forget her worries. And while she loved listening to other people's music, Bella secretly longed for the day when she could write and sing her own songs. She had tried writing a couple of songs back home, but she decided that they weren't very good. She hoped that by going back to school she would develop her writing skills further in English class.

School. The shower had helped placate her expected nerves, but as Bella stepped out of the shower, she still couldn't help but feel a little anxious. Remembering her meeting with Ronan yesterday, Bella took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, reminding herself that she already had a friend and that meant meeting one less new person on her first day.

Toweling herself dry, Bella put on her clothes and brushed her long hair. Even though her hair hung straight when it was wet, in a few minutes Bella knew it would start getting wavy again. She just hoped it wouldn't frizz too badly for her first day. Having a different accent would be enough to single her out among her peers. Satisfied with her appearance, Bella tossed her pajamas onto her bed and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

The whole house had a very seaside cottage feel, and Bella loved it. She especially loved the wicker and glass dining table that had come with the house; it had little seashells glued on to the legs of the table and reminded her of the ocean that was ten minutes away from her house.

"I'll have to go exploring sometime soon" Bella thought to herself as she entered the kitchen.

Her parents were up and drinking coffee.

"Morning Bella. Did you sleep ok?" Her father put his coffee mug down and looked at Bella.

"Yes, I did. I fell asleep looking at the stars through my window. There sure are a lot of them here!" Bella replied as she moved towards the fridge. Her parents didn't normally make her breakfast during the school week, so Bella had quickly learned how to fend for herself in the kitchen. She got a clean glass from an unpacked box and poured herself some milk. She rummaged through another box to find a plate and a knife for her toast. Even though they had gone grocery shopping yesterday, there still wasn't much selection in terms of breakfast items. Sighing, Bella turned to find some sort of spread for her toast, and settled on raspberry jam. The toast popped and Bella quickly made her breakfast before sitting at table.

Her mother was supposed to be taking her to school in 15 minutes, but Mrs. Hartley didn't look particularly awake, even with a cup of coffee in her hand.

"Mom, are you still taking me to school this morning?" Bella asked between bites.

"Of course! I was just going to polish up now." Her mother replied, putting her drained coffee mug in the sink and rushing off to her bedroom.

17 minutes later and Bella was off to school. "I hope I'm not late" Bella thought to herself. It would make a bad impression on her teacher and classmates, and Bella would be insecure for the rest of the day. Thankfully, her mother seemed to know where she was going, or at least faked it quite well, because they got to school a couple minutes early. Mrs. Hartley smiled.

"See Bella? Nothing to worry about. Now I can go in and meet your teacher and send you off properly." Mrs. Hartley chattered as she opened the door for Bella. The coffee seemed to do her some good.

Walking up the steps, Bella looked at her new school. It was a bit old, but charming. White sandstone had been used to build several small buildings centered around a courtyard with a variety of trees. The lawn was a bit unruly, with large patches of shamrocks encroaching on the daffodils, but otherwise Bella liked her new school based on its appearance. Mrs. Hartley slowly walked with Bella, trying to find her classroom. Finally, they found it, the building farthest away from the entrance.

When Bella walked into the classroom, her eyes were drawn to the large windows that overlooked the cliffs. Sea gulls screeched as they surrounded the cliffs and occasionally dove into the ocean below. Immediately Bella felt more comfortable. Her teacher was welcoming other students and parents, but Mrs. Hartley insisted that they should wait in line to meet her. There was no sight of Ronan yet.

"Ah welcome sweetheart. You must be the new girl, Bella, right?" Bella's teacher bent over to greet her. Short brown hair and a nice pair of glasses looked Bella directly in the eyes. Bella nodded her head. "We don't have many newcomers in this town, so everyone knows when someone moves here. Well, I'm glad you're here Bella and hope you enjoy fourth grade this year." She smiled and talked to Mrs. Hartley briefly, but Bella's attention was captured by a head of brown, messy hair. Ronan had finally arrived.

"Ronan! Hi." Bella blushed as she ran over to greet him.

"Hey! Bella, nice to see you here. I had absolutely no idea you were in my grade." He smiled smartly, before grabbing her hand and leading her to the windows. "Everyone loves the grade four classroom because it has this fantastic view of the cliffs. Although I hear that the seagulls make it harder to concentrate when you're taking a test."

"Yeah, I can imagine." Bella looked longingly at the ocean. "It is beautiful though. I think the ocean will help me relax in here. I'm kind of nervous." She looked at the ground as more children poured into the classroom.

"Well, don't worry Bella, you've already got a friend. And I'll introduce you to some of our classmates; it'll be fine." Ronan winked and led her to a new group that had just entered the room.

"Hey everyone! This is Bella. She just moved here from Australia." Ronan burst into the group. They stared at him for a moment before a few girls spoke up. "Hi, I'm Elsie and this is Hayden." A blond haired, freckled girl was the first to reply, and she pointed to another red haired girl as she introduced her. She continued talking: "So you're from Australia? I can tell. You have really dark skin. Oh! Can you say sometime in your accent? I've always wanted to hear a genuine Australian accent." Elsie spoke her last sentence in a mocking accent. Bella looked down self-consciously. She examined her skin. Surely she wasn't that dark? Everyone told her she had lovely golden skin, but in that moment she felt so completely lost; her resolve was weakening. Mustering up her courage, Bella mumbled a "nice to meet you too" before getting out of the group.

"Hey! Forget about Elsie. She can be intimidating. I'm Hayden." The red haired girl came to sit next to her. "Looks like we're going to be desk mates." She pointed to the nametags on the desks. Ronan was at another table and was anxiously glancing towards Bella. Bella ignored him.

"Um yeah. Nice to meet you. I'm Bella." Bella put out her hand for Hayden to shake, but the other girl just stared at her until the teacher called the class to attention.

* * *

By lunch time Bella was convinced that school was terrible. Hayden had already gotten her in trouble twice for talking, and Elsie and her group of mean friends had stolen half of Bella's already sparse lunch, teasing her for not packing enough and that tomorrow she needed to bring them an offering or else they would take her whole lunch. Bella was too shy to tell the teacher, and Ronan was off playing with a group of boys. Suddenly Bella felt very alone, and she wanted nothing more than to leave the stifling classroom and run into the ocean. She stayed inside during recess, preferring to look out the window instead of playing with the other kids in the courtyard.

The rhythmic crash of the waves below kept Bella sane during those final hours of school. Whenever Hayden tried to steal her eraser to coerce her into talking, Bella looked out the window and listened to the soothing waves and crying gulls.

When school was over, Bella knew her torture wasn't over yet. Her mother had instructed her to take the school bus home; she would have to take it every day. Quietly, Bella gathered her things and walked to the school bus. She hopped on and took a seat near the front. And although she had to endure many strange looks from the other kids, at least she was near the driver and hopefully wouldn't be harassed as much. When Ronan stepped on, Bella cringed. He hadn't spent much time with her today, and she blamed him for making her seem like some sort of outsider that morning when he introduced her to the large group.

Ronan waved to Bella, but she turned to look out the window. She didn't bother to see his reaction. For the duration of the bus ride, Bella stared out the window, getting a better idea of what her new hometown looked like.

Finally, her stop arrived. She got off and almost sighed when she realize no one else was getting off. No one else except Ronan. Bella mentally groaned, but at least she knew he wouldn't pick on her. She started walking briskly down the road to her house. Ronan ran to catch up.

"Hey Bella. How was your first day?" Ronan asked as he caught up to her.

"Terrible. How about you?" Bella snapped. Ronan looked hurt for a second, then asked her gently,

"Why was it so bad? I saw you looking out the window a lot…" He seemed genuinely confused.

"Because Hayden and Elsie and everyone thought I was weird and different and now they're picking on me and Hayden tries to steal my erasers and get me trouble and a group of girls stole half my lunch and it's all your fault!" Bella ran ahead, frustrated as she began to cry. She didn't want to go home. No one was there anyways; her parents wouldn't be home until six.

Ronan yelled to Bella as she rushed up the steps to her house, but she called back a "leave me alone!" when he knocked on her door. "Great, now he knows where I live." Bella thought to herself. If he lived on the same street though, Bella knew she couldn't avoid him the entire year. Curiously, she stepped out on her steps again, and saw Ronan's figure disappear into a house two doors down.

Sighing, Bella decided she need some alone time, but she also needed something to keep her mind off of today's events. An idea struck her – she would go exploring near the cliffs and ocean behind her house. After getting a quick snack and dropping her backpack in her room, Bella was off.

**A/N – Abrupt ending, I know, but I figured I should stop before I got too carried away! I think we all know what comes next J Anyways, thanks for the reviews/follows/favorites – it makes the writing process a lot more rewarding! Stay tuned for the next chapter in a couple of days. - CF**


	3. Chapter 3

Bella walked briskly over the sloping dune hills behind her house. After a ten minute walk, she could see the ocean. It was so expansive and beautiful, and Bella had a fleeting thought "I wish I could escape into the ocean and leave all these problems behind. Ronan, school, new house, new country. I would swim all the way back home to Australia if I could." Sighing, she continued on.

The fresh air did Bella some good, as did the ocean view. They calmed her mind and reduced her stress from earlier in the day. Bending over, Bella picked a couple of yellow flowers from the tall sea grass. She smiled to herself and started humming as she walked ever closer to the sea's edge. She put one of the flowers behind her ear and impulsively threw the rest into the ocean.

Now the ground beneath her feet was black, craggy rock. Wet moss covered some of the rocks, making them slippery. Bella noted that she would have to be careful where she stepped. The ocean crashed into the shoreline, just feet behind where Bella was standing. Ocean spray tickled her nose and invigorated her senses. Enjoying the moment, Bella stood on the rocks, facing the ocean. She let go of all her anxieties and simply anchored herself to the crash and pull of the waves. And although the weather was overcast and the ocean was probably cold, Bella had a strange desire to go swimming. She wanted to feel the water wash over her, to feel weightless in the vast power of the ocean. Bella closed her eyes.

Suddenly, Bella felt a strange longing in her chest. She felt like she needed to get up. Something was pulling at her, and Bella felt physically obligated to move. Throwing a glace back at the ocean. Bella turned away and began to follow the drawing feeling. She walked along the rocks for a good ten minutes before she felt that she was getting closer to the target. And then it stopped. The tugging feeling left her chest, and Bella looked down at her feet. Five feet in front of her, she noticed an opening in the rocks; a sort of underground tunnel seemed likely if she continued down its path.

Bella felt like Alice in Wonderland for a moment, staring at the rabbit hole and whether or not she should go in. Her mind reasoned that she might not find a way out if she went down. Her heart told her that a dose of adventure was exactly what she needed. And there was that tugging sensation. Bella felt like she was drawn to the hole in the ground, for reasons she couldn't explain but perhaps ones she could find out. Little did she know that her decision to enter the cave would affect the rest of her life.

Slowly, cautiously, Bella lowered herself into the cave. It wasn't that steep, but she knew she would have a hard time climbing back out. Ignoring the idea of her return journey, Bella took in her surroundings. The cave was dark, but she could make out a light source towards the back end of the tunnel. Otherwise, there wasn't much in the craggy cave, other than a few stray boulders and scuttling crabs. The tugging feeling came back. Bella continued walking down the tunnel. After a couple of turns, Bella found herself in a chamber with sand covering the ground. There was a fair amount of light coming through a natural skylight in the ceiling of the room. Feeling that she wasn't quite at the end of her journey, Bella scanned around the room and noticed another passage leading further into the cave.

As she started on the new passage, Bella noticed she was heading on a downward slope. The light in the tunnel increased, and after a final turn Bella came into the end of the passage way. A cool sea breeze hit her face as she walked into the exposed sea cave. Half of the cave was sandy and had a rock wall that opened its mouth to the ocean. The other half of the cave contained the most spectacular pool Bella had ever seen. It was fed directly by the ocean through and underwater channel, as the water levels fell and rose slightly with the tide. By sitting in the pool, one could easily lean onto the rock barrier that separated it from the ocean and gaze at the moon and stars.

Bella stood in a trance for a moment, absorbing her surroundings and acknowledging the pull of the pool. After a minute of staring at the cool, blue water, Bella noticed that it was getting dark outside. Her parents would probably be worried and looking for her. But Bella couldn't shake the magical feeling that had come over her. Without a second thought, she lowered herself into the pool, daintily putting in her feet in first, not bothering to take off her shoes. After testing that the water wasn't too cold, Bella pushed herself fully into the water. She gasped for a moment, but then let herself feel the coolness of the water. Her blue dress darkened under the water and swirled around as Bella began paddling towards the edge of the pool that faced the ocean. Immediately she felt placated as she watched the full moon rise from the horizon. Bella knew she was going to be in trouble when she got home, but in that moment of bliss, she couldn't care less.

Watching and listening to the waves and the sounds of the gulls, Bella let time fly by. She hardly noticed when the moon rose directly above the pool. What she did notice was that the pool was suddenly bubbling. Trying to peer into the depths of the pool, Bella looked for a source of the bubbles, but the water was too frothy and dark to see anything. Tiny bubbles and golden flecks of light started to rise into the air and towards the opening - towards the moon. Yet throughout the strange disturbance in the water, Bella kept calm. She was curious, sure, but something inside her told her that everything was going to be ok. Then, as soon as the bubbling had started, it ceased, and Bella was left once again in the ordinary pool.

"A moon pool. That's what this is" Bella thought, "because it has such a great view of the moon at night." She had a feeling that she would be coming back to the cave often. It would be her special spot that no one else could get to. "I just wish there was a faster way to get to the pool. That walk down the passages was sort of long and dark." Bella thought before realizing that she would have to traverse the dark terrain again to get out. She could feel the water coming in from the sea through the opening farther down in the pool, but she wasn't sure her little lungs could make it to get to the ocean on the other side. Besides, what if she got swept out to sea?

Sighing, Bella swam back to the opposite edge of the pool and hoisted herself out of the water onto the sandy floor of the cave. She brushed off the sand that stuck to her arms and began walking towards the entrance/exit of the moon pool. Taking one last look at the pool, Bella stepped into the passage that would lead her back to the opening in the ground.

* * *

Looking up at the hole in which she had come down through, Bella wasn't sure how she was going to get out. The drop down wasn't long, but it was sort of steep. She felt the wall, searching for any good hand or foot grips. Find a few, Bella grabbed the handholds and lifted herself off the ground. After a few more minutes of scrambling, Bella had successfully gotten out of the hole and crawled onto the ground, exhausted. Exploring was more tiring than she thought. She closed her eyes for a moment, and began to dream about worried voices and bright lights. Opening her eyes again, she realized that she wasn't dreaming. There were people on the rocky shoreline calling her name and swinging around flashlights. They were searching for her.

Bella's mind went to her cave. "I can't let anyone find it! I have to get away from here." Slowly, she stood up and began walking closer to the people calling her name.

"Bella? Bella where are you? Bella!" Mr. Hartley's worried face settled on his daughter's tired face and he scooped her up in his arms. "Oh sweetheart we were so worried! Are you all right?" He looked fearfully at Bella, as if she was a broken doll.

"I'm fine dad, just tired. I… I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to get lost and cause you worry. I just wanted to get some fresh air…" Bella looked ashamedly away. She really didn't mean to worry her parents and now she felt guilty about her actions.

"I'm just glad you're safe." Mr. Hartley squeezed his daughter in his arms. "Hey, I found her!" he shouted to a group of people farther away. Mr. Hartley carried Bella to her mother and a group of worried neighbors. Little Ronan, with his cinnamon colored hair even stood among the group, carrying a small flashlight. Bella turned to look at her mother. She couldn't believe so many people had come looking for her.

"Oh my Bella, my Bella" Mrs. Hartley whispered as she hugged her daughter. "I was so scared." Her mother's eyes had a level of worry in them that Bella had never seen. Again, she felt guilty for her actions.

"I'm really sorry Mommy. I went to explore behind the house and ended up falling in a cave and getting wet." Bella replied, not giving away any details of her discovery. She just wanted to placate her parents' worried minds by telling them it was her fault she got lost and no, she wasn't hurt.

The neighbors looked comfortingly at Bella, and one man spoke up. "It's good to have an adventure now and again. Each experience is new and precious and happens to us for a reason. I hope you learned a lot on your adventure, lassie." He winked at her before disappearing into the crowd again. The old man's words touched Bella, and she felt a little more at ease as her father carried her back up the slope to their house.

After thanking their neighbors profusely, the Hartleys went inside to take care of Bella. She wasn't in trouble, but her parents made Bella promise them that she wouldn't go off on any adventures without telling them first. She nodded quietly and starting eating some warm chicken broth her mother had made her. After being wet for so long, Bella was just beginning to warm up, thanks in part to the soup. Her parents decided it was best if Bella didn't go to school tomorrow so that she could sleep in and recuperate. Bella was secretly glad that she wouldn't have to face Hayden and Elsie again tomorrow. However, since both her parents were working, Bella would have to stay home alone. Home, her parents reminded her; she wasn't allowed to leave the house.

After a short conversation with her parents and another bowl of chicken broth, Bella was finally ready for bed. After what felt like the longest day ever, Bella quietly put on her pajamas, brushed her teeth and climbed into bed. She hugged her stuffed animals like the previous night, but unlike last night she didn't dream and instead went straight to sleep.

* * *

**A/N – I know in the flashback in the show that Bella immediately gets a tail after being in the moon pool, but I figured to keep her transformation similar to that of the three girls on Mako. Meaning she won't find out about her tail until the next day. Thanks for reading and keep reviewing! **


End file.
